Tess Giberson may be one of New York's brainiest designers. This season, she dubbed her collection Shift and chose to explore the word's many meanings. The results included skirts made from doubled-over shirts, a superfluous armhole decorating the upper thigh; jersey tank dresses with twinned necklines so it looked as if they were two pieces, not one; and an asymmetric shirtdress that was looser and longer on one side than on the other. It may sound overthought—the kind of thing that happens a lot at design school—but she pulled it off with finesse, smartly marrying the quirkier pieces with straight-up tailored jackets and vests and skinny leather pants that will be easy sells at the specialty boutiques that stock the label.

One piece that wasn't for sale, but perhaps should've been, was an enormous yet delicate beaded chain fishing net Giberson made in collaboration with the artist Carol Bove. Shrink it down a few feet and it would make a dramatic shawl, the kind of thing that her cerebral, arty fans might like to wear to a gallery opening or museum gala.